Chuck vs the Impossible Question
by Arathorn73
Summary: Season 3 spoilers have me in a bad mood. This story tells a DARK tale of a conversation between Chuck and Sarah going all wrong. This is not my normal positive style. Be warned. Short and the opposite of sweet. Rated T for violence.
1. The Question

Chuck wore, not surprisingly, a short-sleeved button-up white shirt, Dockers, and his customary Converse Chuck shoes. He also wore a serious expression. Since he was on his way to Sarah Walker's apartment, that countenance was a surprise.

Similarly, he carried the reasonably predictable vegetarian pizza with no olives. He also carried a loaded handgun, for reasons that he dared not think about too deeply.

Thus, it was a mass of contradictions and a bundle of nerves that knocked on the so-familiar door.

A moment later, almost as if he had been expected, the door opened and revealed Sarah Walker. She wore men's briefs and an old Stanford t-shirt that had once belonged to Chuck. Those were her favorite lounging clothes, particularly when she expected to be alone.

"Chuck!" she said, surprised and a bit happy to see him. "What brings you by?"

"Dinner." He sighed. "And conversation."

Sarah recognized that tone. It was his serious talk voice. It was also the most frightening sound on the planet. She hated nothing more than when Chuck really wanted to talk. She always felt inadequate and useless – two feelings she went out of her to not cultivate in herself but that grew regardless.

"O-okay-y." She dragged the word out. "Is everything OK with Awesome and Ellie?" It was sick and depraved, but she hoped they weren't fine. That would be an issue she could potentially handle.

"They're fine. More than fine. Marriage really seems to agree with them. But that leads me into my topic."

Cursing mentally, Sarah reached for a slice of pizza. "Chuck, do we have to -"

"Yes, we do. I can't do this any more."

"Do what?" She knew exactly what he was talking about, but if she could push him off-course, if she could only deter him, maybe the evening wouldn't turn into a disaster.

He looked right through her, knowing it was a lie but answering anyway. "This thing with us. This are-we-a-couple or aren't-we? This looking at others the way we know we want to look at each other."

Taking a nibble of her pizza, Sarah braced herself. "What are you saying?"

"What I should have said a long time ago. Sarah Walker, Jenny Lisa Burton, I don't care what you call yourself. I don't care who you've been in the past. I know who you are now. I see you. And I love you. I can't pretend otherwise any longer." He swallowed deeply, even though he hadn't yet touched the pizza. "What I need to know, tonight, is this. Sarah Walker, do you love me?"

_The next two chapters are Sarah's possible answers to this question. It's not really a choose-your-own ending. I am simply showing two alternate universes._


	2. No

Sarah looked at Chuck's face, at the earnestness and sincerity there. He truly believed he loved her. And, she had to admit, he probably did, for any definition of 'love' she could imagine. Did she love him, though? How could she answer?

She couldn't look at him as she answered. "I'm sorry, Chuck. No." She felt the tears running down her face. It would be so easy to love him, but she didn't. Not like he deserved. Not like he could be loved. She wasn't capable of that.

Through blurred eyes, she looked at him. Shock, pain, and infinite sadness etched his face. His smile, the special smile he reserved just for her, couldn't be seen anywhere. It didn't seem likely it would ever be seen again.

He tried to speak but choked on his own words. Drawing a deep, ragged breath, he tried again. "Then go. Leave, please."

"WHAT?!?" She should have expected that, but she didn't. And she simply could not leave him. She had promised to protect him from everything and everyone. That was a promise she intended to keep.

Tears ran down his face as he spoke. "I-I-I c-can't … do this anymore. Every time … EVERY TIME I see you, I just … I want … I can't be near you and not be with you. Can't you understand that? It's driving me crazy." His voice went from normal to yelling to near-whisper. And Sarah hung on every word.

"What if I won't go?"

Suddenly, a pistol appeared between them. Chuck was backing away, keeping his weapon shakingly aimed in Sarah's general direction. "You … you have to! I can't do this any more!" His voice was even wilder than his hair.

"Chuck," Sarah kept her voice very level. "You won't shoot me. Just give me the gun and we'll figure this out."

His eyes opened wide. "You're right. I could never shoot you. But if you won't leave, I have no other choice."

In a moment, he swung the gun around. Before Sarah could react, the trigger pulled and bone, brain, and blood splattered against the wall. Apparently, she couldn't protect him from Sarah Walker, and that was the fatal mistake.

By the time the police arrived, a second lifeless body had joined the first. The official report ironically listed the incident as a lover's quarrel.

_Can't say I didn't warn you._


	3. Yes

Sarah looked at Chuck's face, at the earnestness and sincerity there. He truly believed he loved her. And, she had to admit, he probably did, for any definition of 'love' she could imagine. Did she love him, though? How could she answer?

She couldn't look at him as she answered. "I do, Chuck, yes. I'm not very good at emotions, but I think I love you."

Chuck dropped to his knees, with a million-watt smile across his face. "You do?"

"I do, but I don't see how it changes anything." Circumstances still conspired against them. The Intersect, her job, his life in danger – it was too much.

"It changes everything. It means we won't have to go through pointless other people. It means I can get through the day."

Sarah tried to smile. "Are you sure?"

"Even if we don't act differently, it changes everything. I know how you feel."

A new voice interrupted their discussion. "I'm afraid you're right. It does change everything." John Casey appeared, behind his customary SIG-Sauer. "You know the rules, Walker. Emotional attachments aren't allowed."

"Casey, you know us. We can do this." Sarah's voice was pleading.

It didn't move the older man. "'Fraid not. I've seen too many agents go soft or hesitate when their emotions are being pulled. You can do this the easy way and leave now and never come back, or…." He gestured with the gun.

Chuck was the first to move. "I'm not letting her go." He ended between the two of them, clearly putting himself into the crossfire position.

"Chuck, get out of the way." Both agents said it, in different tones of voice.

Casey continued, "This is for your own good, Bartowski."

"I'm not moving. Let's talk this out." He tried to get them to see reason.

He failed. He was no match for trained agents. Sarah rolled to her left and went for her knives. Casey went to his right to get around the interference. His first shot caught Sarah in the left shoulder and spun her slightly. A knife flashed through the air as a second shot rang out.

Casey's throat blossomed into blood even as his bullet tore through Sarah's insides.

Chuck watched helplessly as they both fell to the ground. Neither spoke another word. After a minute, the sole survivor moved to Casey and picked up his firearm.

He spoke to the dead man. "You're wrong, Casey. This is the opposite of good for me."

When they found him, his lips were pressed against Sarah's forehead and his two wounds almost identically matched hers.

_Can't say I didn't warn you._


End file.
